Harpist Catrin Finch plays her own Goldberg Variations transcription with a consistently suave yet variegated tone, nimble fingers, and ear-tickling nuance. Her tempos for the Aria and its Da Capo more-or-less mirror Glenn Gould’s 1981 piano recording, but otherwise she’s her own role model. However, the harp’s lack of a dampening device other than human hands causes rapid contrapuntal lines to blur. That accounts for much of this performance’s resonant mush–the cross-handed variations and the toccata-like No. 29, for example. It’s less of a problem in slower, minor-key variations, where Finch’s eloquent musicianship–as opposed to “stunt-personship”–most persuasively comes to the fore. There’s no pretending that Finch’s accomplishment builds upon, let alone surpasses, interpretive insights that distinguish the finest harpsichord and piano versions. Yet hers may be the most soothing Goldberg Variations on disc. Treat your massage therapist to a copy.
